Friends accept THC award
Lereatha Clay, chair of the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission Board of Trustees, presented the 2019 Friends Alliance Award for Stewardship to the local nonprofit Friends of Fort Griffin State Historic Site at the 2019 Real Places Heritage Tourism & Historic Preservation Conference Opening Reception in Austin on Wednesday, Jan. 16.
Clifford and Lynne Teinert and Steve and Susan Waller accepted the award on behalf of the Friends of Fort Griffin, a local nonprofit whose primary purpose is to help preserve and restore the original buildings at Fort Griffin State Historical Site.
“We were very pleased to represent Albany,” said “Friends” secretary Susan Waller. “It was a great honor! It is very gratifying to be recognized by the Historical Commission.”
A plaque and $150 was presented to the Friends of Fort Griffin. The prize money will go into the Friends of Fort Griffin account.
“It was a nice deal, with a couple hundred people at the reception,” said Clifford Teinert.
Each year the Stewardship Award is given to recognize a Friends Group organization for outstanding volunteer service, augmenting site staff capacity through any number of volunteer assistance programs including hiring temporary staff, fundraising for additional operational support, maintenance or preservation needs, and/or providing in-kind services or supplies.
This year the top stewardship nod was given to the Shackelford County based group in acknowledgement of the fundraising, historic renovation, and support for educational programs provided to Fort Griffin State Historic Site.
Over the years, the Friends have funded research on the Powder Magazine, restoration of the Powder Magazine, work on the barracks chimneys, restoration of the Bakery, replacement of the roofs on the Mess Hall, the barracks, and the Jackson House, providing food for reenactors at the fort, and research on the Sutler Store.
“We’ve already spent over $100,000 on upgrades at the park,” said Susan Waller. “We want to continue to make the already great fort even better.”
The Friends’ current project is one that they hope will ultimately result in the restoration of the Sutler store at Fort Griffin, rebuilding the associated outbuildings, and restocking the store with period correct merchandise.
The entire project, as are all such endeavors at Texas Historical Sites, is overseen by the THC and must be approved by the commission at each step along the way.
The Friends have filed for needed permits, underwritten the required archive research to start the project, and have funded an archeological study of the site.
Additional funds will be needed to undertake the actual construction once that is approved by the THC, and Baird said that he is hopeful that winning the award will help draw attention to the fundraising efforts of the local group including the Friends of Fort Griffin Gala, which is held each October.
Friends groups such as the Friends of Fort Griffin exemplify what an effective public-private partnership may achieve to support state budgets, bringing much needed additional funding for Texas’ beloved historic sites, according to the state board trustees.
Another local historic site, the Shackelford County Courthouse, was featured in the recent Texas Historical Commission publication 2019 Courthouse Cornerstones.
Susan Waller brought back several copies of the publication, and they will be available at the Courthouse, the Albany Chamber of Commerce, and First Financial Bank.
